


The Hunt For the Chraka Rathklo

by Airawyn



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992), Jossverse
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Gen, Troika, trio, what if
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-01-04
Updated: 2005-01-04
Packaged: 2017-10-23 18:54:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 16,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/253774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Airawyn/pseuds/Airawyn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Xander is forced to kill Dawn to close Glory's portal, Buffy quits slaying. But Sunnydale still needs protection, so Xander teams up with his new friends Andrew, Warren and Jonathan to form a superhero team. AU from "The Gift."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Live And Let Die (Prologue)

Xander saw Spike fall from the tower and hit the ground. He glanced over at Buffy, but she was still struggling with Glory.

*Go, Xander! Help Dawn!* Willow said telepathically. Xander ran. Up the tower, feet barely touching the ramp as he climbed. At one point his foot slipped and he nearly tumbled off the edge, but he hardly noticed. Time was of the essence, time after time, time keeps on ticking, ticking...

"You're too late," said Doc, grinning. His reptilian tail swished back and forth.

"No," said Xander. But he could see the blood dripping off Dawn's feet. He clung to the top railing of the tower, trying not to gasp for breath.

"Oh yes," said Doc. "See for yourself." He waved a hand at the portal opening below them, and bowed mockingly at Xander.

Xander pulled a small revolver out of the pocket of his jacket, and shot Doc in the head. The demon looked stunned, and tumbled off the tower.

"Dawn!" Xander ran to her, and untied the ropes.

"Xander!" She threw her arms around him, and hugged him tight. "What... where'd you get the gun?"

"Giles," Xander said. "He gave it to me, just in case-" He broke off, but Dawn understood.

"In case you guys were too late?" asked Dawn. Xander looked at his feet, trying to avoid her eyes, but he couldn't help noticing that the portal below them was growing. "I know, Xander. I know what you have to do to close the portal." A bolt of lightning shot from the portal and hit the street below them.

"I can't. There's no way, Dawn-" The tower shook.

"You have to, Xander. I wish-" She shook her head. Tears ran down her cheeks. "Just - please, tell Buffy I love her. And Willow, and Tara, and Giles, and Spike, and- and Anya, too. And tell Buffy, it's ok. I know she tried."

"Dawnie-"

"You, too, Xander. I love you." She hugged him again. He held on longer this time, until the tower shook violently.

"I love you, Dawn," Xander said. He let go of her, and raised the revolver. Dawn squeezed her eyes shut. Xander held his breath, and pulled the trigger.

* * *


	2. Tomorrow Never Dies

Xander browsed through the comics at Sunnydale Comics & Games. They'd just got a bunch of old back issues in, and he only needed three more issues to complete his X-Factor collection.

Xander spent a lot more of his time and money in this shop these days. He'd always collected comics, but in recent years he'd been so busy working with Buffy in the fight against evil that he hadn't had much time for anything else. Now, though...

He hated that Buffy refused to speak to him, and Willow couldn't even look him in the eye. If only there had been a way to do things differently. But he and Giles had talked about it. Once Dawn's blood began to flow, the only way to prevent the whole fabric of reality from being shredded was to kill Dawn. There was nothing Buffy could have done, since she was still fighting Glory at the time. Xander hated it. He hated that he had been the one to kill her. He loved Dawn like a sister. But he knew that if the whole world was sucked into hell, she'd be better off dead anyway, and at least this way the rest of the world was safe. Buffy hadn't understood. He hadn't expected her to, but he hoped she'd come around in time. Meanwhile, he was staying out of her way. Giles had returned to England. She couldn't forgive her Watcher, either.

Now the only person around who was talking to Xander was Anya. He missed having other friends to hang out with. Even Anya wasn't very happy with him. She couldn't understand why he wouldn't set a date for the wedding. He couldn't explain to her that didn't want the wedding until he knew all his friends would be there. He tried to tell her, but she'd never had friends who were as close to her as Buffy and Willow were to him, so she just didn't get it.

So Xander spent a lot of time reading comics and watching movies. It saved him from thinking about things he didn't want to be thinking about.

"Xander?" asked a familiar voice. Xander turned around. Jonathan Levinson, from Sunnydale High, was standing near the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons books.

"Hey, Jonathan. Haven't seen you since..." Xander thought for a moment. He didn't think he'd seen Jonathan since graduation, but for some reason a swimsuit calendar kept popping up in his head.

"Yeah, it's been ages," said Jonathan. "What've you been up to?"

"Work, mostly," said Xander. "I've been doing a lot of construction. How about you?"

"Oh, taking some classes at UC Sunnydale. How's Buffy and the gang?" Xander's face must have shown what he was feeling, because Jonathan said, "Oh, sorry, man. Not so good?"

"We had a falling out," Xander admitted. "Artistic differences. I've decided to embark on a solo career."

"Oh," said Jonathan. "Well, we've got a gaming group going on weekends. If you're interested, you're welcome to stop by, hang out."

"Actually, that might be kind of cool. What are you playing these days?" asked Xander.

"Mostly D&D, though we do Champions once in a while," said Jonathan. He pulled a scrap of paper out of his pocket and wrote down an address.

"Here you go," he said, handing the paper to Xander. "It's Warren Mears' place. Do you know Warren?"

"The robot guy?" asked Xander, remembering the Buffybot.

"Yeah, that's him. He's amazing with electronics. And his mom's got this huge basement that she lets us use for games," Jonathan said. "Next game starts at 6:00 Friday. Come on by."

* * *

Xander didn't think he'd actually go over to Warren's house. After all, guy who built the Buffybot? Not on the top of Xander's "people I want to hang with" list. But Anya helped him change his mind.

She came home from the mall with a bag full of beauty supplies and found him sitting on the couch, watching the local news.

"Does it seem like the body count is higher than usual?" Xander asked.

"What? Oh, that's probably because Buffy left town," said Anya.

"She did?" said Xander, surprised. "When?"

"Last weekend. When her dad visited for the funeral, he offered to let her stay with them in Spain. She finally decided to take him up on the offer."

"Spain? With her dad and his secretary?"

"Yeah," said Anya. "She said, 'It'll be freaky-weird, but at least it won't be Sunnydale-weird.'"

"Huh," said Xander. He was a little hurt that Buffy hadn't told him she was leaving. Then he remembered - they weren't friends anymore.

"You need to get out," said Anya.

"What? What did I do?" asked Xander.

"Not this second. But I need alone time. I have things to put on my face and hands that will temporarily make me appear repulsive, but ultimately enhance my beauty and slow down the aging process. And I don't want you to see me when I'm repulsive. Why don't you go visit Jonathan and the perverted robot guy?"

"Anya, he built a sexbot of Buffy," said Xander.

"Oh please. Like you haven't fantasized about a sexbot of your own."

"I wouldn't - "

Anya rolled her eyes. "I didn't say you would. All I'm saying is, maybe this guy isn't so bad. And Jonathan's an okay guy. Plus, they invited you over on the very night when I need you to leave. I think you should go."

There really was no arguing with Anya-logic.

* * *

Xander had to admit, it was good to spend time with guys who were into same things he was.

"Why did the Klingon cross the road?"

He hadn't done any serious roleplaying since Jesse died. No matter how wonderful Buffy and Willow were, there were some things they just didn't get.

"To conquer the other side." There were groans.

"What does a Romulan frog use for camouflage?"

And around the Scooby gang, he was the low man on the totem. No super powers, no magic ablitity. Just this guy, you know? But here he was actually pretty cool. Not to mention the only one with a girlfriend.

"A croaking device." More groans.

"Ok, Andrew. Enough jokes. Roll your saving throw," said Warren, who was the Dungeon Master for their game.

"Ok! I'm rolling," said Andrew, rolling a 20-sided die.

Warren swore he wasn't building anymore robot women. And Jonathan and this other guy, Andrew, were pretty decent.

But the roleplaying couldn't keep his mind off the situation in Sunnydale. If Buffy was gone, who was going to protect the town? Last time, he and Willow and Oz and Cordelia had done it. Now Willow wasn't speaking to him, and the other two had left town. Xander knew he couldn't go out patrolling on his own. But who could he get to help him?

"Hey," Xander said suddenly, a thought forming. "You guys want to team up and fight evil?"

* * *

"You're what!" exclaimed Anya. "I thought you got over this hero stuff. You don't have any skills. Without Buffy, you'll get killed!"

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Ahn," said Xander.

"Don't be stupid! I don't want you killed. I like you alive, with all your parts!" said Anya.

"It's ok. We're going to be a superhero team. I've done it before, back when Buffy ran away to L.A. for the summer. We all fought evil together, me and Willow and Oz and Cordelia. And Willow didn't know much magic back then. And this time it'll be lots better. Warren can build all kinds of evil-fighting gadgets, and Jonathan's decent with the magic, and Andrew can summon demons."

"Because that's just what Sunnydale needs. More demons," said Anya.

"Well, if he can summon demons, maybe he can make them go away, or summon demons to fight other demons. We'll work it out."

"They don't need you though. You don't have any powers," said Anya. "You can stay home with me."

" _I_ am the voice of experience. The tactician. I have five years experience of fighting evil, and they're brand-new at it. They need me. And I don't need super powers. Batman doesn't have any," said Xander.

"Batman's not real! And besides, he's got lots and lots of money," said Anya.

"We will have money. After tomorrow." I hope, added Xander silently.

"What happens tomorrow?" asked Anya.

"I'm going to face one of my nightmares come true."

* * *

"You're sure you want to wear that suit? Because we're a few minutes early, and there's a store down the street with some great men's clothing." asked Cordelia.

"Cordy, I appreciate you arranging this meeting, but I don't need fashion advice," said Xander. Once he and the guys had decided to become a superhero team, they had realized that they would need some serious money to build Warren's gadgets. Xander had called Cordelia for financial advice, and she had offered to introduce him to someone that might be able to help.

"Okay, whatever." She pushed open the door to the office, and approached the receptionist's desk. "Hi! I'm Cordelia Chase, and this is Xander Harris. We have a three o'clock appointment with David Nabbit?"

* * *

"So this guy just _gave_ you this money?" asked Jonathan. Back in Warren's basement, Xander explained that they now had full financial backing from billionaire David Nabbit. Jonathan and Andrew were sprawled on the couch, but this news had gotten them to pause their video game.

Xander nodded. "He set up a bank account and everything. He said we just need to let him know if we run low on funds."

"But no restrictions?" Warren asked skeptically. "He's not getting the patents on any of my inventions, is he?"

"Well, he did ask if he could stake a vamp with us sometime. But he's going to Japan for a couple of months, so we've got time to practice before we bring him out here."

"Yeah, probably be a bad idea to get our finance guy killed," said Jonathan.

"Unless he'd put us in his will," said Warren thoughtfully. The others turned to stare at him. "Kidding! Duh."

"This is so cool!" exclaimed Andrew. "It's like he's Nemo and we're the League of Extraordinary Gentleman!"

"Yeah, it kind of is," grinned Xander. "Now come on, let's go over some of the drills I showed you."

Andrew sighed dramatically. "We've been practicing all day!"

"No, we've been playing _Quake_ ," corrected Jonathan.

"That's practicing! Hand-eye coordination, dude!" said Andrew.

Warren groaned and leaned over from his computer desk to smack Andrew lightly on the back of the head. "You can't kill a vampire with a controller, numb-brain."

"I'll wear the puffy suit this time," offered Xander.

"Okay," sighed Andrew. "Can I try out the battle axe yet?"

"No," said the other three together.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got the Star Trek jokes from http://astro.bu.edu/~avondale/StarTrek/STHumor/STjokes.html


	3. For Your Eyes Only

As Xander dragged himself down the hallway to his apartment he wondered if he could get Anya to give him a massage. It had been a long day, what with the trip to L.A. and the combat practice in Warren's basement. He hoped what he'd learned from helping Buffy train would be enough to keep them all safe.

He opened the door to his apartment, and heard the voice of the last person he wanted to see.

"Actually, I think turquoise polyester is a commonly acceptable substitute for blood larva and burlap these days," said Spike.

"Really?" Anya replied. "Because I do want to be traditional, but Xander has been objecting to-"

"Get out, Spike," said Xander. Spike and Anya looked up from the couch, where they had been looking at bridal magazines.

"Hello to you, too, Xander," said Spike, closing the magazine he was holding and standing up.

"Oh, don't lose my place!" Anya said. Spike handed her the magazine.

"Why did you invite him over?" Xander asked Anya. He'd encouraged Anya to have friends of her own but maybe he should have mentioned a few restrictions. For one, no evil undead. Where was that disinvite spell Willow always used?

"Actually, I came over here to see you," Spike said.

Xander couldn't think of any good reason Spike would want to see him. "I'm thrilled. Get out," he said.

"Heard that you and your buddies are trying to be heroes," said Spike

Xander looked over at Anya, who shrugged. "I might have mentioned it this afternoon," she said.

Great. She'd been talking about him at the Magic Box again. They really needed to have a discussion about mission secrecy. Xander sighed and turned back to Spike. "So you, what, came to mock me? Fine, you've mocked, now leave."

"I came here to help," said Spike.

"You want to help? Okay, whose pants are you trying to get into this time?"

"Not yours, Superboy. Look, I got some information I thought you and your mates could use. Figure I could make a few bucks, that's all," Spike said.

Xander sighed. "Fine. What've you got?"

Spike held out his hand. "For a hundred dollars."

"Twenty. _If_ I think it's worth it," replied Xander, ignoring Spike's hand.

"Eighty."

"Thirty."

"Seventy."

"Forty."

"Fifty," said Spike.

"Fine, fifty," said Xander. He got the cash out of his wallet, but didn't give it to Spike. "Let me hear it first."

Spike rolled his eyes, but withdrew his hand. "Word on the street is that there's a sorcerer, a pretty powerful one, looking for an amulet. Don't know the details on it, but sounds like it's the kind of thing you goody-goody types might want to get to first."

"Don't suppose you happen to know the name of this amulet? Or the sorcerer?"

Spike held out his hand again. Xander shook his head in exasperation, but handed over the money.

"Don't know the sorcerer's name. The amulet's called the Chraka Rathklo," said Spike.

"The Shock-a what?"

Spike glared at Xander, but he picked up a pen and notepad from among Anya's wedding stuff. He wrote the name on the pad, and handed it to Xander.

"Chra-ka Rath-k-lo," Spike said slowly. "Got it?"

"Got it. Get out," said Xander.

"Gladly," said Spike. He pushed past Xander, and left the apartment.

"You could have got it for thirty," said Anya, who was still studying her bridal magazines. "You started too high. In a bargaining situation-"

"Anya, it has been a very long day. Can you save the economics lesson for another time? Please?" asked Xander.

Anya looked up at him, and put her magazine down. "You know, I got some new oils today. The lady at the shop said that they're edible, and if you put them on your skin and rub them, they heat up. Do you want to test them out?" She smiled at him, and Xander smiled back. The evening was looking up.

* * *

When Xander arrived at the Magic Box the next day, he found Jonathan already there, studying one of the books piled on the table. At least one of the new gang was taking this job seriously.

"Hey," said Xander, as he sat down next to Jonathan. "What've you got?"

"Well, Anya said these books," he pointed to the stack of books on his left, "are the most likely to contain references to the Chraka Rathklo, since it sounds like a Grethlan object. But these books," he pointed to the stack on his right, "may have references to magical amulets and modern sorcerers."

"Cool. Thanks honey!" Xander said to Anya, who was doing inventory on charmed objects near the front of the store.

"Don't talk to me. I'll lose count," said Anya. "You can thank me properly later."

"Okay," said Xander. His brain offered a few images of how to thank her, but he sternly ordered it to focus on the task at hand. His brain protested, offering up memories from the previous night. He allowed his brain to show him a few images, then told it to save the rest for later. He turned back to Jonathan. "How far have you gotten?"

"This is the first book I've looked at."

Xander nodded, and picked up a book himself. He was three-quarters of the way through that book when Andrew and Warren finally walked in. Jonathan was starting on his third book.

"You're late," said Xander. Whoa, did he just sound like Giles? He'd have to warn Anya to keep him away from tweed, just in case.

Andrew and Warren sat down at the table. "We were working on some stuff," said Warren. "And what's with the change of venue? I thought we were meeting at my place."

"I asked you to meet me here because I got a tip that an amulet called the Chraka Rathklo could be important. So we're here to find out what it is and why it's important," said Xander.

"Ah," said Andrew, nodding wisely. "Because knowing is half the battle."

"Exactly," said Xander. "And the other half involves pointy sticks. But we're working on the knowledge part today." Xander pushing research. Who would've thunk? He handed Andrew a book. After a moment, Warren reluctantly took a book, too.

"So where'd this tip come from?" asked Warren.

"Um, this guy I know named Spike," said Xander.

"The vampire?" Warren exclaimed. "We're working with vampires now?"

"Just this one. He's neutered," said Xander. "The government put this chip in his head so he can't hurt any living thing."

"Really?" said Jonathan, looking up from his book. "The government?"

"So is he like the Bionic Vampire?" asked Andrew.

"No, he's a normal vampire. Still evil and all. Just harmless," said Xander.

"How long has he been... neutered?" asked Warren.

"Couple of years. Guys, can we focus? Forget Spike. He's not important," said Xander. "We need to find out about the amulet."

"Okay."

"Yeah."

"Whatever."

* * *

"Don't they make comic book versions of any of these?" asked Andrew. They'd been researching for a couple of hours now, and he was starting to get restless.

"They're not Moby Dick," said Jonathan. "These are incredibly rare volumes filled with ancient mystical knowledge, doofus."

"Hey! I'm just saying this would go faster with pictures!" said Andrew, glaring at Jonathan.

"Yeah, if we knew what it looked like, moron!" Jonathan replied.

"This one's got pictures," said Xander hastily. He handed the book he was holding to Andrew. Warren was engrossed in a book of his own, and seemed to have tuned out the others.

"Ew! Gross!" said Andrew, staring at the woodcut.

"Let me see!" said Jonathan.

Andrew pulled the book close to his chest. "No way, you scruffy-looking nerf-herder! Get your own."

Jonathan tugged at the book. "Let me see!"

Suddenly Anya appeared behind them, and grabbed them both by the hair. The boys froze.

"Jonathan, let go of the book," she said. Jonathan removed his hand. "Andrew, put it down on the table." Andrew carefully set the book down. "That book is worth more money then either of you will ever see in your lifetimes. If you hurt it, I will eviscerate you. Got it?"

"Yes," said Andrew and Jonathan together.

"Good." She let go of them.

As she walked away from the table, Xander mouthed, "Thank you!" at her.

"We're going to have a long talk about proper discipline before we have children," Anya said.

"Of course," said Xander. Children? "Sometime in the... far future."

"Ew!" said Jonathan, who was looking at the book of woodcuts. "Is that even possible?"

Xander glanced at the picture. Oh yes. That one had given him interesting nightmares his senior year. "Only under a full moon."

* * *

"Oh, I think I found something!" said Jonathan, two hours and one pizza break later. (The pizza had been eaten far, far away from the books after a scorching look from Anya.) He skimmed through the page in front of him. "The Chraka Rathklo is one of five Chrakas, one for each of the five elements."

"Five?" said Xander. "I thought there were four."

Jonathan nodded. "Those are the four basic elements; earth, air, fire and water. But there's a fifth, sometimes known as 'spirit'. It's representative of the metaphysical world. 'Rathklo' is the Grethlan word for 'spirit', so the Chraka Rathklo is the spirit Chraka."

"Yeah, but what's a Chraka?" asked Warren.

"It's..." Jonathan studied the pages in front of him. "It's like a conduit. It connects the bearer to the element it's associated with. Then they can channel it."

"Channel it? Like a psychic or something?" asked Andrew.

"No," said Jonathan. "More like a fire hose. The Chraka lets the bearer tap into the element, but it doesn't control it. The bearer has to be strong enough to do that himself."

"Which fits with there being a powerful sorcerer looking for it," said Xander. "I'm thinking it's not something we want them to have?"

"Probably not," said Jonathan. "A sorcerer connected to the spirit world in that way would be able to make changes to the very fabric of reality. Odds are pretty high that he would burn himself out trying - but if that happened, it could tear a hole in the veil between our world and the spirit world."

"Wow," said Andrew. "It'd be like in that massive DC/Marvel crossover where Superman and the Amazing Spiderman battle Lex Luthor and Doctor Octopus, and that guy kept trying to patch up the hole between worlds with duct tape!"

"Sort of. Only not!" said Jonathan. "This would be more of a nightmares-come-true situation. Ghosts would be able to steal the bodies of the living, and all the demons and spirits that can't normally affect our world could do- well, whatever they wanted."

"Okay. So we have to stop it," said Warren.

"Right," said Xander. "How do we get the Chraka, and how do we destroy it?"

"There's a spell in here that will help us track the Chraka, but the ingredients might be hard to find," said Jonathan.

"Make a list of them. Anya can probably get them for us," said Xander.

Jonathan nodded. "There's several references here to a 'Chraka destroyer' but I can't tell if that's a spell, an object, or a person. The translation's a little spotty."

Xander sighed. "Okay. You know what this means."

"Time for a massage from Swedish twins?" asked Warren hopefully.

"More research," said Jonathan.

"More research," agreed Xander. His brain offered up ideas of things he'd rather be doing. He glanced over at Anya. His brain helpfully offered up a slide show. He groaned, and picked up another book. There'd be time for that stuff later, he told his brain. And share that message with the other body parts, or else the guys might get the wrong impression, he ordered.

* * *


	4. On Her Majesty's Secret Service

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some dialogue lifted from "Life Serial" because even in alternate timelines, certain conversations are destined to happen.

Xander arrived at the Magic Box after work a few days later to find his teammates engaged in a full-blown argument. Anya was nowhere in sight.

"You're insane. You're short, and you're insane," Warren yelled at Jonathan across the table.

"Whoa!" Xander called out, holding his hands out in front of him. "What's going on here?"

"Nothing. We're fine," said Warren. "We found a destruction spell for that thingy --"

"We?" asked Jonathan.

Warren ignored him. "-- and Short Round here was going to translate it, but instead he started babbling the most obscene nonsense you've ever heard!"

Oh, crap. This didn't sound good. A curse? Possession? If their magic guy was magically sick, who would cure it? "Jonathan?" he asked. "You okay?"

Jonathan turned to him. "Who's the best Bond?"

That was the big argument? "Connery," he said without hesitation. "Who else could it be?"

"Ha!" said Warren.

"No way! Roger Moore was smooth. Who remembers Connery?" scoffed Jonathan.

Xander couldn't believe the blasphemy coming from his friend. Maybe he _was_ possessed. "'Who remembers Connery?'" he repeated in disbelief. "How about everyone? He defined the role. He is the Bond by which all other Bonds must be judged and found wanting." He gaped at Jonathan. "Moore?"

"I like Timothy Dalton," offered Andrew. Warren smacked him upside the head.

"Moore was funny," argued Jonathan stubbornly.

" _Moonraker_?" asked Xander. He and Warren looked at each other and shook their heads. "A remake of _The Spy Who Loved Me_ trying to pander to the _Star Wars_ boom," said Xander.

"Bond in space? How can that be bad?" asked Jonathan.

"There's _Star Wars_ and there's Bond movies, but the two should never, ever mix," declared Xander.

"Yeah, it'd be like Klingons on the _Millenium Falcon_ ," added Warren. "Dude, the gondola? And the pigeons? _Moonraker_ is inexcuseable!" He swept his arm in a dramatic gesture as if to wipe away all memories of that movie and knocked several books off the table.

"Oh, that's nice," said Anya, as she emerged from the back room. "Frighten away the customers and destroy the merchandise."

Andrew scrambled to pick up the books. "They're not damaged. Don't hurt us!"

She let out a long sigh. "Xander, you have a delivery in the back." Xander nodded. "I like Pierce Brosnan," she added. "Sometimes I pretend Xander's Pierce Brosnan when we're having sex."

The boys stared at her, not sure how to respond to that.

Xander was sure he was blushing. Maybe he should build a trap door into the Magic Box so he could disappear at times like this. "Let's get that delivery," he said hastily.

"That's one of those things I'm not supposed to share, right?" Anya asked as they left the room.

"Yeah," said Xander after they were out of earshot. "Please don't tell the guys about our sex life."

"Right," she said. "Well, I'm busy keeping the engagement secret. Other things just slip out."

"Is that why you told Spike about the wedding?" Xander asked. He thought Anya wouldn't play games like other women. Her honesty could be embarassing, but at least he knew she wasn't lying to him. Usually. Unless she was learning how to lie. Did they teach that to women? Was that what those articles in _Cosmo_ were about? He should ask Will- no. He felt a twinge in his stomach when he remembered that Willow wasn't speaking to him.

"You said you weren't ready to tell any of your friends. Spike's not your friend." She looked at Xander's expression and sighed. "No, I told you. I had all the wedding stuff out when he came over the other night. He just thinks I'm making plans early. He doesn't think you'll ever propose."

"We will tell them, Anya. When it's the right time."

"I know," she sighed. "Here's your stuff," she said, gesturing toward a stack of boxes sitting outside the back door. "They're heavy, so you'll have to carry them in."

Xander counted the boxes. Looked like all the supplies had finally arrived. "Okay. Will you send the guys out to help?" She started to leave, but he put his hand on her arm. "Ahn, I love you," he said, kissing her lightly. She rolled her eyes, but kissed him back, lingering for a moment.

"Does this mean you're patrolling tonight?" she asked. He nodded. "Be careful. I want you to come back with all your parts."

"We'll be careful," he promised.

* * *

"Gold Leader, this is Red Leader. Do you read me? Over." came Warren's voice from the radio headset.

"10-4, this is Gold Leader. Over," responded Xander. He tugged at the hem of his shirt. The military-style fatigues they'd ordered provided great camoflague but they still had that new-clothes stiffness. But, along with the stake bandolier on his chest and the crossbow slung across his back, he felt tough. Macho, even. Not that he'd say that. Something about saying the word "macho" immediately negatated the macho-ness of whatever macho thing you were doing.

"What's your twenty? Over," asked Warren.

"Restfield. I mean #5. Over," said Xander. He saw Jonathan fiddling with the headset on his walkie-talkie, and put his hand over his own mic to whisper, "Are you getting this?" Jonathan nodded.

"We've got a nest here in #2. Over," said Warren.

"How many?" asked Xander. Nest? Were they ready to take on a nest? "Um, Over."

"Four that we see. Over."

Four. Four on four. One each. Sure, they could handle that. "Ok, we're on our way. Wait for us. Over," said Xander.

"Which one is #2?" asked Jonathan.

"Not sure," said Xander. "Check the list."

Jonathan pulled out their list of radio codes from his pocket. They'd assigned numbers to all the cemeteries in Sunnydale to make it easier to keep track.

"#2 is...," said Jonathan as he scanned the list. "Shady Hill."

* * *

Warren and Andrew waited for them at Shady Hill Cemetery. They really looked like a team, Xander thought proudly, especially in the fatigues with the stake bandoliers. Ok, the Super Soaker water gun Andrew carried kind of ruined the tough-guy image, but it was practical. He couldn't think of why they hadn't used holy-water guns in the past. Probably because there was too much risk of hitting Angel or whatever other vamp Buffy had befriended, he thought angrily. Then he felt guilty for thinking badly of Buffy. Which lead to the thought that she was probably thinking badly of him, if she thought of him at all, which just lead to more anger and more guilt and wasn't he here to kill vampires, not chase his personal demons around in his head?

"They're in there," said Warren. He gestured to a crypt nearby.

"Got a plan?" asked Xander. He slid his crossbow off his back and loaded it.

"You and I go in first with the crossbows. We can surprise them with a couple of shots. Then the three of us attack with stakes while Andrew covers us with the water gun," said Warren, loading his own crossbow.

"That sounds good," said Xander. Jonathan pulled out two stakes, one for each hand. Andrew lifted the Super Soaker. "Ready?" asked Xander. They all nodded.

Xander opened the crypt door slowly. It creaked a little, but the vampires feasting inside didn't seem to hear. Warren and Xander both fired at the nearest vampire. One of the shots hit its arm, barely nicking it. The other found the heart, and the creature crumbled into dust. Warren and Xander both slung their crossbows over their shoulders and pulled stakes from their bandoliers. One down, three to go.

The other three vampires rushed at them. Panicked, Andrew fired the Super Soaker and hit Warren in the ear with a strong blast of holy water.

"Hey!" yelled Warren, and turned to Andrew.

"Sorry!" gasped Andrew.

"Heads up!" said Xander.

Warren turned back around just in time for a vampire to grab him by the neck. Fortunately the vamp got holy water all over his hands and jumped back, hands smoking. "Ha!" Warren yelled. He jabbed at the vampire with his stake, but the creature dodged easily and kicked the stake out of Warren's hand. "Ow!" Warren cried, shaking his hand. The vamp smirked. Warren frowned and grabbed another stake from his bandolier.

Xander ducked as another vampire's fist flew at him. He grabbed his attacker's arm, pulled the vamp towards him, and punched it in the face. It reeled back, and Andrew hit it with a squirt of holy water. It screamed as its face burned. Xander thrust a stake into its chest and it exploded into dust.

Jonathan rushed at the third vamp, but it hit him in the stomach, and he flew back, retching.

Warren kicked the one he was facing, and tried to stake it, but the vamp grabbed his arm, and twisted it to the side. "Ow!" yelled Warren, and kicked the vampire in the shins, hard. The vampire stumbled and let go of Warren's arm.

The third vamp moved in on Jonathan, but Xander grabbed its shirt and pulled it back. It elbowed Xander in the face and pulled away. Xander slammed a stake into its back, but it didn't turn to dust.

"Dammit!" cried Xander. He'd missed the heart. He wished the vampires would stand still, like the practice dummies. It'd make this whole gig go a lot easier. But then everyone would be staking vampires. It wouldn't be special anymore, just an everyday occurrance. What did you do last night, Bob? Oh, the girl and I had dinner and staked a few vampires. You?

The vamp turned around and grabbed Xander by the neck with one hand, lifting him off his feet. Oh, not good. Andrew pointed the Super Soaker at it, but the vamp grabbed the gun with its other hand, yanked it away from Andrew, and hit him across the face with it. Andrew fell, clutching a bloody nose. The vampire dropped the gun and turned back to Xander.

Xander looked around for help. He saw the other remaining vampire move in on Warren, who backed up and almost tripped over the water gun. Warren glanced down, grabbed the gun, and hit the vampire over the head with it. The water compartment broke and spilled the rest of the holy water over the vamp. The vampire screamed as the water poured over his head, burning like acid. Warren staked the vampire, and it crumbled into dust. "Take that!" he yelled, accidentally inhaling a lungful of dust. His elated look faded as he coughed up the remains of his enemy.

Xander kicked at the vampire holding him, but couldn't get free. Hard to breathe with a vampire holding you by the neck, he thought. Or to yell for help. Not his most original thoughts, but it was hard to think much of anything without oxygen. The vamp pulled him closer, fangs bared. Suddenly it froze, then crumbled to dust. Xander fell to the ground, gasping for air. Jonathan was standing in front of him, holding a stake and looking triumphant. Then Jonathan's expression changed, and he ran outside. The sounds of puking drifted in through the door.

"I think that's enough patrolling for tonight," said Xander, standing up. He looked around at Warren coughing, Andrew bleeding all over his new fatigues and Jonathan stumbling back inside. This probably wouldn't make the Guinness Book of Great Vampire Battles, but they'd won. For now, that would do.

* * *

"You survived!" said Anya, when Xander arrived home. "That's great!"

"Thanks, honey," Xander said wryly.

"Mmm, you're all sweaty and dusty," she said, moving in to caress his chest.

"Vampire dust turns you on?" said Xander. "I should have- mmph!" Anya kissed him. After a few minutes, Xander pulled away to catch his breath. Anya took this opportunity to unbutton her blouse.

"I kept thinking of ways you could have died," she explained. "And I've got a costume I was saving for a special occasion, but if you died, I'd never get to wear it, so I'm going to wear it for you tonight."

Xander grinned. "I'll have to not die every night."

"Good," she said. "I like that plan. Now take off your pants and wait for me on the couch."

* * *


	5. The Man With The Golden Gun

"Got it!" exclaimed Anya, hanging up the Magic Box's shop phone. She danced over to the table, where Xander and Jonathan were researching. She frowned, looking around. "Where are the other guys?"

"Oh, they're working on some gadget over at Warren's place," said Jonathan.

"What've you got?" asked Xander. He couldn't help smiling at her enthusiasm.

"Your sorcerer!" she grinned. "The one who's looking for the Chraka Rathklo. I just got a call from Jenni. She's the witch who works in the Water Department and likes to spend lots of money on her ingredients?" Jonathan looked blank and Xander shook his head. Anya shrugged. "Anyway, when she came in here to pick up the newt's eyes she'd special-ordered from England, I asked if she'd heard anything about new sorcerers in town. She hadn't, but she just called to tell me that her brother's girlfriend's best friend works at this club downtown where these guys hang out, and everyone's talking about some new guy who's been poking around, asking for information on your thingy."

"Great! Good job, honey," said Xander. "What did you find out?"

Anya's smile slipped a little. "That there's a new guy in town, asking for information."

"Oh. That's good," Xander said encouragingly. Jonathan nodded.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "There was a name, too. 'Thorn Magenblod.'"

Jonathan frowned. "Sounds powerful."

Anya shrugged. "They all give themselves names like that. I knew a warlock named 'Bloodwin Thunderdark.' His real name was Marvin Griffith. Skinny guy with glasses, and red hair that always stuck out in odd directions."

They all laughed. "Bet he was a real wimp, too," said Jonathan.

"Oh, no," Anya shook her head. "He used to impale people who laughed at him on ten-foot stakes in front of his mansion. I think that's why he changed his name, actually. Kept running out of stakes, and the hellhounds could only eat so much flesh a week."

Jonathan and Xander's smiles faded.

"That's helpful, though, right? The name?" she asked hopefully.

"Yes," said Xander. He thought his voice might have cracked, so he cleared his throat. "Yes. Any information is good." Anya smiled and returned to the store counter, where a customer was waiting for help.

Xander and Jonathan stared at their books in silence for a few minutes. Finally, Jonathan spoke. "I could try the tracking spell we talked about. If we found the Chraka and destroyed it, we'd never have to deal with this sorcerer."

Xander nodded. "Sounds like a plan. Do you have all the supplies you need?"

"Pretty much. There's one herb I had to order, but Anya says it should be in by tomorrow."

"Good," said Xander. "We'll tell Warren and Andrew when we meet up with them later."

* * *

"You're like, our Q," said Andrew in amazement. Warren grinned.

"It's only the beta version," he said, holding up the new UV-Blaster. "I don't know exactly what components of sunlight actually make vampires burn, so we'll have to test it."

"Cool! When Xander and Jonathan get here, we can take it on patrol," said Andrew.

"We could," said Warren. "Or we could go by ourselves, now."

"Without backup?" Andrew said doubtfully. After a few nights of patrolling, Andrew suspected that Xander was the only one of them that really knew what he was doing.

"Hey, I'm not talking about taking on a nest. We just need a test subject, and they're busy doing the research thing." Andrew still looked unsure. Warren added, "One vamp, Andrew. Look, if you're scared, I can just do it myself."

"I'm not scared!" lied Andrew.

"Ok, then. Let's go," said Warren.

 

* * *

After checking the obituaries, they decided to stake out (so to speak) Restfield Cemetery. According to the newspaper, several people had been buried there that afternoon, after dying of "severe neck rupture". Warren said multiple corpses increased the odds that they'd encounter a vampire, since not all vamps turned their victims. Andrew thought multiple corpses increased the chances of multiple vampires, but he didn't want to argue with Warren. They donned their battle gear. The Super Soaker hadn't been replaced yet, and Warren wouldn't let Andrew use a crossbow ("You shot me in the ear with the water gun. You think I'm gonna let you use projectiles?") so Andrew just loaded up a stake bandolier. Warren, of course, had the UV-Blaster.

They arrived at the cemetery, weapons ready, and waited for the vampires to rise from the grave. And waited. And waited some more. After an hour or so of standing at attention, ready for trouble, they started getting bored. Warren sat on a headstone and fiddled with the controls on the UV-Blaster. Andrew sat on the ground nearby and used a stake to sketch anime characters in the dirt.

"I wonder if vampires are like fish," said Andrew.

"Fish?" Warren was used to Andrew's non sequiturs, and barely looked up.

"Yeah. When you go fishing, you're supposed to be quiet, 'cause the fish can hear you. So maybe the vampires can hear us, and so they're not going to come up until we leave."

"Huh." Warren considered this, then shrugged. "I don't think they would care if we were waiting for them. They don't know that we-" He stopped, and looked at the ground below him. He raised his voice a little. "That we're here and helpless. Nice, tasty treats just full of hot, fresh blood." He kept his eyes on the ground. Andrew stopped drawing, and watched Warren stare at the grave. After a few minutes, Warren looked at Andrew and shrugged. Andrew relaxed, and resumed sketching.

"We need a cool name," Andrew said, after a few minutes. "Like the Fantastic Four, or the Justice League. I know! We can be the X-Men, 'cause Xander's our leader."

"He's not really the leader," scoffed Warren. "We're a team. And we should have an original name, not something from the comics."

"Ok, how about The Sunnydale Defenders?"

"Sounds like a football team."

"The Dark Knights?"

"Not original."

"Shadow Warriors?"

"Too anime-sounding."

"You come up with some names, then!" said Andrew.

Warren thought for a moment, and shrugged, "I don't know. The Quartet?"

"Boring. Oh! And what about uniforms?"

"We don't need uniforms," Warren said.

"Sure we do. We want people recognize us as a team," Andrew said.

"No one's going to see us except vampires," replied Warren.

"Someone might. Besides, we've got to protect our secret identities. And all the cool superheroes have uniforms."

"We've got our battle wear," said Warren.

Andrew shook his head. "Not cool enough."

"'What would you prefer? Yellow spandex?'" quoted Warren. He and Andrew looked at each other, and laughed. Just then a hand reached out of the ground and grabbed Warren's ankle. Warren screamed, and kicked, pulling his foot out of the vampire's grip. He hopped off the headstone, and backed away, pointing the UV-Blaster at the grave. Andrew jumped to his feet and held up his stake, ready for action.

Another hand punched its way out of the ground. Warren fired the UV-Blaster at the hands. Light flashed, but the hands were undamaged. Warren swore and adjusted a dial on the blaster. The hands grabbed the ground around them, and the vampire's head emerged from the grave, dirt sliding off its hair. Warren fired again. Another flash of light, but this time one of the hands caught fire. The vampire screamed, and the head and both hands disappeared back into the dirt. Warren waited, finger on the trigger of the blaster, but the vampire didn't reappear.

"Hey!" Warren walked over to the grave and kicked the dirt. "Come back!" He waited, but the vampire didn't reappear. "Andrew, dig him up."

"What, so he can bite me while you fix the blaster? You dig him up," said Andrew.

"The blaster works fine! But I can't hold it and dig at the same time."

"Okay, then I'll hold the blaster while you dig him up," said Andrew.

"No way. You'll break it."

"No I won't!"

"Yes you will! Anyway, it's my design. I-" A vampire came from behind Warren and grabbed him by the throat. Startled, he dropped the UV-Blaster and tried to pry the hand off his neck. Andrew couldn't help Warren, since he had been grabbed by a second vampire. The vamp brought his head closer and Andrew could smell fresh dirt and a faint odor of something rotten. He tried to scream, but the hand around his neck wouldn't let enough air through to make any noise. He kicked helplessly as the vampire lifted him off the ground, and gasped in pain when it sunk its teeth into his neck. Then he fell to the ground when the hand holding him crumbled to dust.

Warren's attacker was gone, too. Jonathan stood behind Warren holding a stake. Andrew turned around to see Xander standing behind him. Xander offered him a hand and helped him get to his feet.

"Thanks," said Andrew.

* * *

"What the hell were you thinking?" asked Xander as soon as they were back in Warren's basement.

"We were just doing a field test of the UV-Blaster," said Warren, putting the device in question on the table and dropping into a chair. Andrew sat in a nearby chair, holding his hand over his wound while Jonathan dug a first aid kit out of the cupboard.

"You took an untested weapon into battle, without any kind of backup," said Xander. Most of his army knowledge had faded away since the Halloween spell a few years back, but every now and then he felt pieces coming back. Or it could be all the army movies he watched.

"We had stakes," volunteered Andrew. "Ow!" Jonathan was cleaning his vampire bite with rubbing alcohol.

"Sorry," said Jonathan. "I gotta get all the vampire dust out."

"But you didn't even bother to wait for us. If Andrew hadn't left a note, we wouldn't even have known where you were," said Xander. "We're supposed to be a team. If we can't count on each other, than this won't work."

"That's right, we're a team. I don't need your permission to go patrolling. You're not the boss of me!" said Warren.

"Well, maybe he should be!" said Jonathan. Everyone turned to look at him. Jonathan backed down a little. "I mean, we should have a leader. All the good teams have one. And Xander's been doing this for years."

"Yeah, as a sidekick!" said Warren.

"Let's vote," said Jonathan. "Who wants Xander to be leader?" He raised his hand. After a moment, Andrew raised his hand too. The look Warren gave Andrew could have stripped the paint from the walls. But Andrew glared right back, and kept his hand up.

Xander didn't really want to be the leader. Responsibility was something he generally tried to avoid. But Jonathan had a point. Of the four of them, Xander was the most qualified to be in charge. And Xander really wanted this superhero team thing to work. Reluctantly, he raised his hand.

Warren looked around at all the votes for Xander. "Fine," he said. "Whatever." He spun around in his chair, bent over the UV-Blaster and started checking all the switches. The others lowered their hands.

"Okay, Xander's in charge," said Jonathan. He pulled bandages out of the first aid box and taped up Andrew's neck wound.

"Okay," Xander said. Now what? "Um, I guess we've done enough patrolling for tonight. We'll meet at the Magic Box tomorrow afternoon and if all the supplies are in, Jonathan'll do the tracking spell for the Chraka." Andrew and Jonathan nodded. Warren shrugged. "Uh, get some rest. It could be a long day tomorrow."

Jonathan finished bandaging Andrew's wound. "Hey, Xander, can you give me a ride home?" he asked.

"Sure," said Xander. Jonathan put away the first aid kit and left the basement with Xander.

 

Warren and Andrew sat in silence for a few minutes.

Finally Andrew spoke. "Are you mad at me?" He nervously fingered the bandage on his neck.

Warren didn't look up. "Look, Andrew, I need to go over the blaster and make sure nothing broke when it fell. I don't really have time to talk about my feelings. Why don't you just go home?"

"Yeah, okay," said Andrew. But he didn't move.

Finally Warren looked up from the blaster and sighed when he saw Andrew watching him. "No, I'm not mad at you. Just disappointed. We're partners! Like Batman and Robin. If we don't support each other, who's going to look out for us?"

"But we're a team! You and me and Xander and Jonathan-"

"Sure, but when we're on the front lines, it's just you and me. I have to be able to depend on you. Can I, Andrew? Or will you be running to Xander's side just when I need you most?"

"You can depend on me," Andrew said. "I promise."

* * *


	6. The Living Daylights

The group met in the back room of the Magic Box the next afternoon, dressed for battle and armed with stakes and crossbows.

"You don't need your gaming stuff, dork," Jonathan said, pointing at Andrew's backpack.

"Duh! It's for supplies. I left my books and most of my dice at home," retorted Andrew. Warren raised his eyebrows at Andrew. "I brought my green D-20 for luck," the blond boy admitted. "Uh, how does this work?" He leaned down and reached toward one of the mystical symbols drawn around a circle on the floor.

"Don't touch it!" Jonathan grabbed Andrew's arm before he could reach the symbol. "I'm going to cast the tracking spell," he added. He held up a small stick of wood which had a string tied around the center. "That will turn this stick into a - a sort of compass, that will point towards the Chraka, if it's within a couple of miles. Then we follow it until we find the Chraka, bring it back here, and I'll cast the spell that will destroy it."

"Sounds easy," said Warren. "What's the catch?"

"We don't know that yet," said Xander. "It'd spoil the surprise."

Jonathan kneeled down and put the stick with the string in the center of the circle. He took four cups, each filled with a different herb, and placed the cups around the circle. He chanted softly as he took each of the cups, one at a time, and sprinkled the contents over the stick. After the last ingredients had been added, Jonathan leaned back, and spoke the final phrase of the spell. A flash of blue light filled the circle and disappeared.

"Oh, very ILM!" exclaimed Andrew.

"Yeah, nice light show," Warren admitted. "But did it work?"

Jonathan picked up the string, and watched the stick dangling from it. Instead of swinging around, the stick pointed rigidly in one direction. He pushed the stick aside, and it immediately snapped back in place.

"Yeah, it works," said Jonathan, standing up.

"Good," said Xander. "Let's go."

 

* * *

In another town, the police might have stopped four armed men who walked through the streets, holding a stick on a string out in front of them. This being Sunnydale, all they got were some strange looks. The makeshift compass lead them to the woods outside of town and into a small cave.

"There's nothing here," said Warren, as they looked around at the walls of the cave.

"There has to be," said Jonathan. "Maybe there's a secret compartment or something. Or it's under a rock?"

"Shouldn't your stick be pointed at a rock, then? Face it, Sparky, the spell didn't work," said Warren.

"There's probably a trick to it," said Xander. He ran his hands over the wall in front of him. Jonathan tried to do the same thing, but when the stick touched the wall of the cave it disappeared, revealing a tunnel.

"Cool!" said Andrew.

"Must have been an illusion," said Jonathan. He stepped into the tunnel and the others followed. The tunnel was completely dark until Andrew flicked on a flashlight.

"Good thinking, Andrew," said Xander.

"I brought a bunch of stuff," Andrew said. "I've got water, food, extra batteries, matches, marbles-"

"Marbles?" asked Jonathan.

"Well, marbles were really useful in the Dungeons of Wraithhaven," said Andrew.

"That was a D&D game!" said Jonathan.

Andrew shrugged. "So?"

"Okay!" said Xander. "Let's get going." He looked behind him to make sure the way they'd come in was still there, and discovered to his shock that it wasn't.

"So, this is real life!" said Jonathan.

"Guys!" Xander said. The others noticed where Xander was looking and turned around. Andrew shined the flashlight down the tunnel, which now continued back as far as they could see.

"Not an illusion," said Jonathan. "A portal."

"Where are we? How do we get back?" asked Warren.

Jonathan studied the tunnel carefully. "I... don't know," he finally admitted.

"Oh, that's great," said Warren sarcastically.

"I don't see you coming up with any ideas, genius boy!" replied Jonathan, glaring at Warren.

"Hey! Warren's not the one who got us stuck here!" said Andrew, crossing his arms and glaring back at Jonathan.

"Stop it!" yelled Xander. The other three turned and stared at him. Xander took a deep breath. "Okay, I've now alerted every nasty within hearing distance that we're here. Look, it doesn't matter whose fault it is we're here. We have to find this chakra-thingy and figure out a way home without losing any body parts, and it will be a lot easier to do that if you guys aren't bickering. So get along! That's an order."

"But-" protested Andrew.

"That's. An. Order," said Xander, staring down at Andrew. Andrew gulped, and nodded. Xander turned to Jonathan. "Which way do we go?"

Jonathan held up the compass. "That way," he said, pointing down the tunnel ahead of him. Xander nodded. "Wait," Jonathan added. "We should mark this spot somehow."

"I have chalk," volunteered Andrew. He pulled a thick piece of chalk out of his bag and drew a symbol on the wall.

"Dude, that's the Quake III symbol," complained Jonathan.

"And a great symbol it is!" said Xander hastily. "It's fine. Let's go." He gestured to Jonathan to lead them.

* * *

It was a rough, natural tunnel, tall enough that they could all stand up straight, but only wide enough for two people to walk side by side. Andrew and Jonathan walked in the front, carrying a flashlight and the compass-stick, respectively. Warren and Xander followed behind them.

"You realize we're heading further away from the way we came in?" asked Warren as they walked down the tunnel.

"Well, yeah," said Xander. "We could walk back and forth over that spot, but that wouldn't help us find the Chraka, would it?"

"I'm just trying to say, how the hell are we getting home? Even if we do find this thing, will it open a portal back? Or will we wander around here forever with a neat little trinket?" asked Warren.

"Not just any trinket," said Xander. "A very powerful trinket that we don't have a hope of using."

"Um, how does that help us?" asked Andrew.

"It doesn't," admitted Xander. "Look, I don't know exactly how we'll get out of here. But we will. Somehow."

"Pep talks aren't really your thing, are they?" asked Jonathan.

"Not so much, no," said Xander.

"I know a spell," said Jonathan. "It can send a message across dimensions, but it needs a focus, like a personal item of the person you're trying to reach."

Xander felt his pocket to make sure his wallet was still there. "I have a photo of Anya," he said. "Would that help?"

"Yeah, that would work." Jonathan turned slightly to look back at Xander, which was probably why he didn't notice that his foot had caught on a tripwire. Xander noticed, though. He saw Jonathan's foot catch the wire and heard a rumbling sound. "So if we get stuck --"

"Look out!" yelled Xander. Andrew looked up, and jumped back, landing on top of Warren and knocking him to the ground. Xander grabbed Jonathan's arm, and pulled him out of the way as several rocks the size of bowling balls fell on the spot where Jonathan had been standing. Xander took a cautious step forward, but jumped back as gravel rained down on him. More rocks fell, and Jonathan flinched at the sound of each one hitting the ground echoed down the tunnel.

Nobody moved for several minutes. Xander looked over at the others. "Anyone hurt?" he asked anxiously. What would he do if they were? Couldn't really call 911 from here.

"I think we're okay," said Warren.

"Me too," said Jonathan. "And, whoa!"

"Yeah," said Xander. "So, guess we need to watch out for booby traps."

"Um, Andrew? You can get off me now," said Warren. Andrew was still sprawled across Warren where he'd landed.

"Oh! Sorry," Andrew said, getting up. Warren stood up too, brushing the dirt off his pants.

"Thanks," said Jonathan to Xander.

"Anytime," said Xander. "Someone should put up a sign -- 'Watch for Falling Rock.'" He laughed awkwardly, but the joke fell flat and his laugh echoed back to him along the tunnel.

They stepped carefully around the rocks and continued down the tunnel, moving slower now. Andrew led the way, sweeping the path in front of him with the beam of the flashlight. They spotted another tripwire near a spot where the tunnel curved, and avoided it easily.

After a few more twists and turns, the tunnel stopped in front of a huge stone door. Scratches marred the center of it, as though some beast had tried to claw its way through.

"I wouldn't want to meet the thing that made those marks," said Xander.

"It's Kler-chu," said Andrew.

"Bless you," replied Xander.

Andrew shook his head. "The marks," he said. "They're not scratches, they're Kler-chu glyphs."

"That's a language?" asked Warren. Andrew nodded.

"Can you read them?" asked Jonathan.

"I think so." Andrew moved the flashlight to his left hand, and traced the glyphs with his right hand. After a moment he started coughing and wheezing.

"You okay?" asked Xander, moving toward Andrew. "Do you need some water?"

Andrew shook his head and held up his hand to keep Xander back. He continued wheezing, and ended with a hacking noise that sounded like he was trying to cough up a hairball. The door creaked, and slowly swung inwards. The others stared at Andrew, not sure how to react to this display of skill.

"What did you say?" asked Jonathan.

"Roughly translated," said Andrew, "it means 'Open, you stupid piece of stone.'" He pulled a bottle of water from his backpack and took a long drink.

"Good job, Andrew," said Xander. Andrew smiled at him.

"Give me some of that water," said Warren. Andrew passed him the bottle, and brought out another one for Jonathan and Xander to share.

"Let's go," said Xander finally. Andrew put the water away and shined the flashlight through the doorway.

* * *

They entered a round room, with doorways leading to tunnels along the wall all the way around. Jonathan held up the stick-on-a-string, and pointed to one of the tunnels.

"That way," he said. They walked along in silence for a few minutes.

"If a caveman and an astronaut got into a fight, who do you think would win?" asked Andrew finally.

"How could a caveman and an astronaut get into a fight?" asked Jonathan.

"Suppose an astronaut hit a wormhole, went back in time, landed near a caveman, and the caveman attacked him," said Andrew.

"The caveman would win," said Jonathan. "He'd be a lot stronger than the astronaut."

Warren shook his head. "The astronaut would be smarter and have superior technology. That beats brute force any day."

"Weapons aren't everything," said Xander, thinking of some of Buffy's fights. "Instinct is pretty important, too."

"Plus, if the caveman attacked first, the astronaut might not have time to get to his weapons," argued Jonathan.

"That wouldn't be a fair fight, then," said Andrew.

"Neither is using weapons against an unarmed caveman," protested Jonathan.

"Then why's he an astronaut and not just a guy, if he doesn't have any modern tools?" asked Warren. "Guy's got to use the abilities he has, fair or not. Besides, the caveman'd be using his tools, right, Andrew?"

"I guess." Andrew stepped forward onto a smooth patch of ground, and a trap door opened under his feet. He screamed, and both he and the light disappeared. Xander couldn't breathe for a moment. He could hear the flashlight bouncing off the side of the pit as it fell, the sound getting further and further away.

"I got him," came Warren's voice. Xander relaxed a bit. "I grabbed his backpack-" The sound of fabric tearing echoed down the tunnel like a gunshot. Andrew cried out in fear. "Need some help here," added Warren.

Xander dropped to his stomach, and felt around in the dark until he found the trapdoor. He reached in, found a handful of soft hair, and moved his hands down until he could grab Andrew's arm.

"Got his arm," said Xander.

"Me too," said Jonathan, who had done something similar.

"Okay," said Warren. "Towards me, on three. One, two, three!" They pulled Andrew out of the hole and laid him next to it, where he clung to the ground.

" _Fiat lux,_ " whispered Jonathan. A tiny spot of light appeared in the palm of his hand, like the light of a single candle. "It's not as bright as the flashlight," he apologized.

"Any light's better than nothing," said Xander. "That's pretty handy."

"Sorry about the flashlight," said Andrew, sitting up.

"Don't even worry about it, Andrew," replied Xander. "We're just glad you didn't go with it. Nice reflexes, Warren."

"Yeah, thanks, Warren," said Andrew. Warren offered his hand to Andrew, who took it and let Warren pull him to his feet. Andrew's backpack now hung from one shoulder. The other strap had torn away from the pack.

"No problem," said Warren.

"Jonathan? Do you have a 'Detect Traps' spell or something?" asked Andrew.

"Andrew? This is real life. Not D&D. Remember?" said Jonathan.

"Yeah, I know, but you made a light spell," said Andrew. "Why not a 'Detect Traps'?"

"I can't detect traps!" said Jonathan. "And I'm pretty limited without my magic bone."

Warren smirked. "Your what?"

"My magic bone. My cousin gave it to me. It's a really powerful magical object-"

"Your _cousin_ gave you a _magic bone_ ," laughed Andrew.

"Guys, don't laugh, it's - seriously, Jonathan? A magic _bone_?" Xander choked back a chuckle.

Jonathan frowned. "If you're going to laugh at me-"

"No, we're not - we need you," said Xander. "Right, guys?"

"A _magic_ bone!" said Warren. He and Andrew doubled over with laughter. Jonathan started walking back the way they had come. "I have a magic bone, too," said Warren. "It doesn't detect traps, though, it detects-"

"Guys!" said Xander. "Lay off Jonathan." Xander reached out and touched Jonathan's arm. "Don't be upset, Jon. Think about it - magic bone? It's really kinda funny." Jonathan pulled away. "But we totally respect you and your magic," Xander added quickly. " **Right, guys**?" He turned and glared at Andrew and Warren. The full effect of the Xander glare was lost in the dim light, but his tone of voice got the point across.

"Um, right," said Andrew, wiping away tears of laughter.

"Totally," said Warren. "Behind you all the way, Frodo."

"Don't call me Frodo," groused Jonathan.

"No problem, Sparky," said Warren. "So? Trap doors are a problem, right? What if we walk along the edge of the tunnel? This trap door was in the center, so maybe any others are, too."

Xander nodded. "That could work. We should probably hold hands, too. Just in case."

"Hold hands!" gasped Andrew. "With each other?"

"You know what homophobia really means about you, don't you?" teased Warren.

"You don't have to hold hands if you don't want to, Andrew," said Xander. "But I don't think your backpack can hold your weight anymore."

Andrew gulped. "I'm okay with holding hands."

They formed a line. Jonathan led them, holding out his tiny light. Their eyes had adjusted now, so they could see pretty well in the dim light. Xander followed, holding onto Jonathan's wrist, since the other hand still held the stick-on-a-string. Andrew clung tightly to Xander's other hand, and to Warren's hand. They shuffled along the side of the tunnel, backs against the wall. They moved slowly, still searching for tripwires along the way.

Suddenly Jonathan stopped. "Uh-oh," he said.

"What? Tripwire?" asked Xander.

"No, a spot just sank under my foot when I stepped on it," Jonathan replied.

"Okay, nobody move," said Xander. They froze. Xander held his breath, listening for any hint of what was coming. He could hear the pounding of his heart and feel Andrew's sweaty hand squeezing his own. He'd almost convinced himself that Jonathan had stepped on a loose rock when the grinding noise began above them.

* * *


	7. Thunderball

Xander held still, waiting to see what trap had been sprung. He heard a grinding above them, as though a machine which hadn't been used for years had just been started up. Then something started to creak. Next came a roaring sound, like a distant waterfall. "Forget that," said Xander. "Run! Now!"

They dropped each other's hands and ran, down the tunnel and around the curves. They stuck to the sides of the tunnel as best they could, but as the roar of water grew louder, they gave up watching their step and ran at full speed.

Suddenly the tunnel ended, opening into a huge cavern with a gaping pit. Xander skidded to a stop at the edge and threw out his arms to stop the others from falling.

"Oh, god!" gasped Andrew.

Xander could smell the musty water now and taste the moisture in the air. Great. Not only was he going to die on some stupid quest, but he'd dragged three other guys to their death along with him. Anya was right, he should have left the heroing to people with superpowers.

"There!" Jonathan lifted the light and pointed to their left. About ten feet away, a thin bridge made of ropes and old planks stretched across the pit to a ledge on the other side.

Jonathan ran for the bridge and ran across it without hesitation. Xander and Andrew followed. Warren paused for a moment at the edge, but grabbed the rope handrail in determination and followed the others. Just before Warren reached the ledge, a torrent of water rushed out of the tunnel and hit the bridge. It tore the rope supports out of the wall and poured over the edge of the pit, taking the end of the bridge with it. Warren hung from the side of the ledge, clinging to the remaining bits of rope and wood. His feet scraped the wall as he tried to climb up, but the dirt was loose and his sneakers couldn't get a grip.

Xander dropped to his stomach and grabbed Warren's arms, hauling him up to the ledge before he could fall into the pit with the bridge.

Jonathan pulled an asthma inhaler from his pocket and took a hit off it.

"You okay?" Xander asked Warren.

"I'm good. Appreciate the save, man," said Warren, with a weak smile.

"Anytime," replied Xander, smiling back.

"Everyone else okay? Jonathan, how's that breathing?"

Jonathan nodded, and exhaled. "'M okay," he said.

"Me too," said Andrew.

"Great! Well, that was a nice adrenaline rush, wasn't it," said Xander. "How about we catch our breath for a few minutes, then see about getting this door open?" He sat down and leaned against the wall. The others joined him, dropping to the ground with exhaustion. After a few minutes of just breathing, Andrew opened his backpack, and passed around the bottles of water.

After taking a long drink, Xander asked, "Didn't you say you had some food, Andrew?"

"Yeah," said Andrew, digging into his bag. "I have Pop Tarts, Twinkies, and Hot Pockets. The Hot Pockets are a little soggy, though. They were frozen when I packed them."

"Ooh! I'll take a Twinkie," said Xander.

"Me too," said Jonathan.

"Pop Tart, over here," said Warren.

Andrew passed out the food, and took a Hot Pocket for himself. They ate in silence (Xander ended up having several Twinkies), and passed the water bottle around again.

Andrew stood up first, after stuffing the used wrappers into his backpack. He studied the door in front of him.

"Is it more of the Kerchief demon stuff?" asked Xander.

Andrew nodded. "I should be able to open it. Are you guys ready?"

"Ready enough," said Xander, standing up.

"Me too," said Jonathan, rising to his feet. Warren just nodded as he got up.

Andrew coughed, gargled and hacked until the door swung open. Jonathan led the way in, holding the light in his outstretched hand.

They entered another round room. This one had unmarked doors all the way around, instead of open tunnels. In the center of the room stood a short pillar, with a small wooden box resting on it. Jonathan stepped toward the pillar and suddenly a sphere of blue light appeared around the box. He stood at the edge of the sphere, frozen for a moment. His stick-on-a-string started to vibrate, then began spinning in place, faster and faster. Suddenly it exploded into dust, and the sphere pushed out and disappeared, throwing him backwards into Andrew. They both fell to the ground.

"I'm okay!" said Jonathan. "Sorry, Andrew," he added, getting up and offering the other man his hand. Andrew accepted the hand and let Jonathan help him to his feet.

"Is that it? The Chraka?" asked Xander, not approaching it.

"I think so," said Jonathan. They all looked at each other for a few minutes, wary of touching the thing. Finally Warren walked over and grabbed the box off the pillar. Everyone except Warren flinched, waiting for disaster to strike, but nothing happened.

"If we're going to be stuck down here, we might as well have the damn trinket that we came for," said Warren. He opened the box. It held a small amulet, made of twisted silver wire and embedded with five small iridescent stones. He passed it around so the others could see.

"It's pretty," said Andrew, who put it away in his backpack after everyone had looked at it.

"Beautiful," said Warren unenthusiastically. "Jonathan? Want to send one of your inter-dimensional instant messages now?"

"I might not have to," said Jonathan, starting at the doors around the room. All of them now bore an exact copy of Andrew's chalk Quake III symbol.

"Can we get out through those?" asked Xander.

"But which one?" asked Andrew.

"Maybe any of them," said Jonathan. "This is a pocket dimension. Normal rules of travel don't apply."

"Well, we won't know unless we try," said Warren. He walked up to one of the doors and touched it. His hand passed through it. He looked back at Jonathan, who shrugged.

"If it's a way home, it's probably another dimensional portal," said Jonathan. Warren looked back at the door, took a deep breath and walked through it. Andrew followed him almost immediately. Jonathan stepped forward, then looked back at Xander.

"You coming, Xander?" he asked. "I'm taking the light with me, so you should probably go first." Xander nodded, and walked through the portal to the other side.

He found himself back in the cave where they'd started. Warren and Andrew were there, and Jonathan appeared right after Xander, banishing the light spell as soon as he stepped through the portal. The angle of the sun indicated it was nearly sunset.

"We made it!" said Andrew. "That was so cool!" Jonathan and Warren stared at Andrew for a moment. Then Warren shrugged.

"Okay, it was kind of fun. Now that we're still alive and all," he said, smiling.

Jonathan laughed. "I finally got to use that light spell!"

Xander grinned. "There were moments of coolness. Let's get back to the Magic Box, and get rid of this thing."

 

They talked about the adventure all the way back to the Magic Box. Survival gave them a different perspective on the events.

"We need pizza for weary adventurers," Andrew called out to Anya as they entered the store.

"Sorry, Anya. I just promised them I'd buy pizza - what's he doing here?" said Xander.

Spike looked away from Anya, who he'd been talking with when they entered the store. "What? I'm a customer!" Xander glanced outside at the setting sun. "Sewer entrance," Spike added. "Gotta stock up on the burba weed. Makes the blood all hot and spicy."

"And yet, I'm still hungry," sighed Xander. The four travelers headed back to the table, and dropped into the chairs.

"You were successful?" asked Anya. Andrew pulled the Chraka out of his backpack and handed it to her. "Oh! It's pretty! Do you have to destroy it?"

"Pretty, yes, but a danger to the fabric of reality, remember?" said Xander. Anya set the box on the table, and went behind the counter. Spike opened up the box and examined the Chraka.

"You folks might make a team of heroes yet," said Spike. "Gotta get yourselves some tights and bright colored underwear, though."

Xander rolled his eyes, too tired to respond to Spike's baiting. Jonathan opened a book on the table, and began preparing the supplies for the destruction spell.

"Andrew? Can you get me the small cauldron off that shelf?" Jonathan asked, pointing. Andrew got up to get it.

Warren lay his head down on the table. "I'm done for the day. Wake me when pizza arrives."

Anya brought Xander the cordless phone.

"You order the pizza, honey. They don't like me," said Anya. "Just because I was a little bit forceful in speaking one time-"

"I got it, Anya," said Xander, taking the phone. Spike set the box down on the table.

"Sun's down. Time to party," he said, leaving.

"Yeah, have fun not biting people," said Xander as Spike walked out the door. "Hello? Pizza Palace?"

"Get pineapple!" said Andrew.

The pizza arrived just before the destruction spell was completed. Jonathan took a break from the spell preparations to eat. After eating, Jonathan picked up the Chraka box to finish the spell. The others were still munching on bits of pizza and drinking soda. Jonathan opened the box. He stared into it for a moment, then looked up at the others.

"Guys? The Chraka's gone."

* * *


	8. Never Say Never Again

Spike. It had to be Spike. "That sneaky evil undead Billy Idol-wanna-be _bastard_ ," swore Xander.

"But I thought he was helping us!" cried Andrew.

"He doesn't help anyone but himself," said Xander. "He must've fed us the information, knowing we'd go after the Chraka." He slammed his hand down on the table.

"And you paid him good money for that information," interjected Anya. "You should demand a refund."

"But he's not a sorcerer, right?" asked Jonathan. "What can he do with it?"

"Sell it," said Warren. "Trade it, hold it for ransom - how could you let him get it?" he demanded of Jonathan.

"Me? I was working on the destruction spell while your lazy ass was dozing away! You should have been watching it!"

"It's not Warren's fault! Spike's a creature of evil. Men of honor such as ourselves wouldn't expect such deceptive tactics," declared Andrew.

Xander shook his head. "I should have known. His price was way too low for that info." He looked at Anya. "Where's the club your friend works at? Maybe Spike's meeting this Thorn guy there."

* * *

Twenty minutes later they were armed to the teeth and standing outside an unmarked warehouse in downtown Sunnydale. A single door lead into the building, guarded by a burly man and a velvet rope.

"You sure he's in there?" asked Warren.

"Makes sense," said Xander. "If he's trying to make some sort of deal, he'd have to meet the guy somewhere. But how do we get inside?"

"Windows?" suggested Warren. They looked up at the tiny, filthy windows near the top of the building.

"Yeah, if you're Spiderman," scoffed Jonathan.

"Windows are an option," said Xander. "Something more direct might be better."

"In the movies, there'd be some hot chick who'd flirt with the bouncer and distract him while we slip in," sighed Andrew.

"Anya's already gone to bed and you do not want to wake her up unless there's an apocalypse," said Xander. "Even then, there'd better be coffee and waffles waiting."

"Well," said Jonathan. "I do know a spell. It's called a glamour..."

* * *

Boredom was par for the course for a bouncer. Freddy liked his job, generally. You met all sorts of interesting folks at the Club, and it fit in with his school schedule. He'd even learned a bit of magic from the patrons. Late nights got pretty dull, though. Everyone who was anyone was already inside, and he'd rather be home reading _Beowulf_ for his midterm.

Until the hot brunette chick walked around the corner. Legs up to her neck, blouse open to her belly button and a skirt the size of a postage stamp. He took a moment to admire the view before wondering - why would a woman dressed like that be out alone this late at night in Sunnydale? She saw him and smiled. She sauntered up to the velvet rope and wiggled her hips.

"Hey there, big boy," she said in a low, sultry voice.

Vampire? No, didn't have that vamp vibe. Sorcerer? Yeah, that must be it. She did have a faint shimmer of magic around her. Anyone walking around around Sunnydale alone in those heels must be pretty confident - and therefore pretty powerful.

"Can I help you, ma'am?" he asked politely. She tossed her hair and thrust out her chest. He revised his assertion. She simply oozed sexuality, which set off a flashing red warnings in his head. Must be a succubus. He shuddered inwardly and kept his eyes on her face.

"I was supposed to meet a friend here, but I'm afraid I'm running a bit late. I think he's already gone inside." He thought he heard a chuckle from behind him, but before he could look, her purse slipped out of her hand. "Oops," she giggled, and bent over slowly to retrieve it. His heartbeat increased as her skirt slid up her thighs but he remembered finding Old Tony's body and resolved to stay strong. Best to get her out of his sight as fast as possible.

"You're welcome to go inside and look for him," offered Freddy, lifting the velvet rope and stepping aside to let her in.

"Thanks a bunch!" She flashed him a smile as she slid past him. Once she was safely inside, Freddy let out a relieved breath and replaced the rope. He was safe, and if the folks in the Club couldn't resist a succubus, they didn't belong there.

* * *

The interior of the Club resembled an old European castle. Tapestries lined the walls, alternating with flickering lights made to resemble torches. In the center of the room a spit turned over a large fire. Men and women in simple grey outfits circulated carrying trays of drinks and plates of food to patrons seated at small tables. Demons in long robes mingled with human-looking people in the latest fashions. Many wore weapons of one kind or another. A large spiral staircase twisted along the edge of the room and lead up to a loft with more tables. The woman spotted three young men partially concealed in the shadows next to the staircase. They snickered as she approached them.

"'Hey there, big boy,'" mocked Warren.

"That's funny. You're a funny guy," said Xander. "Jonathan, can you take the spell off me now? Hey! My eyes are up here, buddy!"

"Sorry, I just - they're right there!" Jonathan cancelled the glamour spell and the woman morphed back into Xander.

"Aw, bad visuals!" exclaimed Warren.

Xander frowned at him. "Were you mentally undressing me?"

"What! No, no way!"

Andrew cleared his throat. "Um, we're on a mission, guys."

"Right," said Xander. "Anyone spot Spike?"

"He's up there." Andrew pointed to the balcony where Spike's bleached hair stood out in the dim light.

Jonathan nodded. "Okay, what's the plan?" He looked expectantly at Xander.

"Plan? Um..."

"What? No brilliant plan from our fearless leader?" asked Warren.

"Shut up, dumbass. Give him a chance." said Jonathan.

"It looks like he's alone," volunteered Andrew. "Maybe he hasn't made the exchange, or whatever, yet."

"Good," said Xander. "Ok. I'll go talk to him. Find out where the Chraka is. You guys - try to blend in, but be ready to back me up. Remember, he can't hurt us."

"What about the other, uh, people?" asked Andrew.

"They can probably hurt us," nodded Xander. "Thus the blending."

"Right," said Jonathan.

* * *

Spike was sitting at a small table near the railing, sipping a thick, red drink that Xander didn't want to know the ingredients of.

"Oh, bloody hell!" exclaimed the vampire when Xander slid into the other seat at the table. "What do you want?"

"What do you think?" asked Xander. "Hand over the Chraka and I won't have to put a stake through your heart."

"Ooh, I'm utterly terrified," smirked Spike. "Wonder Carpenter and the Fearsome Threesome are after me. However will I get out of this? Gosh, I wish I were in a heavily guarded club where humans are on the menu, not the invite list." He glanced pointedly at the spit turning downstairs.

Xander's stomach turned, but he resisted looking down. "And how do they feel about neutered vampires? They know you gotta beg money from humans to buy blood?"

Spike's grin grew wider. "Not going to be an issue after tonight. I know a guy. And I've got something he wants, thanks to you. Now why don't you bugger off like a good boy and I promise I won't kill you tomorrow."

Great. An evil sorcerer would get the Chraka, _and_ Spike's chip would be deactivated. How much more badly could he screw up this gig?

"If your promises were worth anything, Buffy wouldn't have had to leave Sunnydale," snapped Xander.

Spike's smile disappeared. "Yes, well, never was meant to be a hero," he said. He looked down at his drink, then downed it in one gulp. He gestured to the waiter for a refill. He looked up at Xander again and forced the smile back to his face. "Guess the pointy teeth should've given that away. 'Bit knew I was a monster. Never should've counted on me." The waiter brought another drink which Spike gulped down.

"Look, I'm -" Xander swallowed an apology. Damned if he was going to apologize to _Spike_ for making him feel guilty. If Spike even could feel guilt. Must just be the huge amount of guilt surrounding Dawn's death and spilling over onto anything touching it that made him even think about apologizing to Spike. "It shouldn't have happened like that," he finished lamely.

 

* * *

Warren, Andrew and Jonathan took seats at the bar, where they could keep an eye on Spike and Xander.

Andrew lay his head down on the bar and closed his eyes. Jonathan poked him in the side.

"Hey!" said Andrew. Jonathan poked him again. "Stop it!" Andrew opened his eyes to glare at Jonathan.

"Well, don't sleep, doofus. We're on the job," said Jonathan.

"I can't help it. I'm tired," sighed Andrew.

"You had three cans of Mountain Dew," pointed out Warren.

Andrew closed his eyes. "Even the mighty goddess Caffeine cannot - hey!" Jonathan had poked him again. Andrew drew a stake and brandished it. "Do that again and I'll stake you!"

"I'm not a vampire, moron!" replied Jonathan.

"A stake through the heart will kill many a creature!" declared Andrew. Warren reached over his shoulder and took the stake out of his hand. "Hey!"

"Do you think you girls could attract a little more attention?" Warren whispered.

"Sorry," said Andrew guiltily. Jonathan didn't say anything, but he stopped poking Andrew. They watched Xander and Spike in silence for a few minutes.

* * *

"Spike," said a vaguely familiar British accent. "Didn't know you were bringing a date."

"Didn't plan to," groused Spike. "Boy's obsessed with me. Can't leave me alone."

A man in long, red velvet robes sat down at their table. He had a short, grey beard now, and a scar across his left cheekbone, but Xander knew that face.

"Thorn Magenblod, I presume," said Xander.

"Can't go flashing the name Ethan Rayne all over Sunnydale now, can I? Some folks 'round here have it in for me."

"Is that why you've got the new look?" asked Xander. "Or have you just been watching too many movies?"

Ethan adjusted the collar on his robes. "Clothes make the man. You should know that, soldier-boy."

"How did you get out? I thought the Initiative had locked you up and thrown away the key."

Ethan laughed. "My dear boy! I'm a British citizen. And I have some very influential friends. Wasn't worth creating a diplomatic incident over little ol' me."

Spike leaned on the table to get between Xander and Ethan. "This is lovely small talk. Can you get the bloody chip out of my head now?"

"So impatient," sighed Ethan. "All right, give me the Chraka."

"How 'bout I show it to you, you take the chip out, then I give it to you?" asked Spike.

"No good." Ethan shook his head. "I'll need the Chraka to get the chip out."

"Whoa, wait a minute," Xander said. "That's our amulet."

Ethan looked at him. "Ah, yes. Spike mentioned you were fetching it for him. I suppose you should have a reward, as well."

"I don't want a reward," said Xander. "I want the Chraka back."

Ethan considered this. "No, I think I want to keep it. But it's only fair for you to have some payment. How would you like that little girl back? Dawn, is it?"

Xander felt like he'd been slapped. Could Ethan really do that? Could he have Ethan bring Dawn back, then get the Chraka from him? How risky would it be?

"Wait a minute, you said you couldn't do that!" exclaimed Spike.

"Can't bring her back to life, no," admitted Ethan. "But I could recreate her. Another construct, just like the old one. Or different, if you like. She could be _your_ sister, this time," he said to Xander.

The hope inside him died. "She wasn't a construct," said Xander. "She was a girl."

Ethan waved his hand. "You'd never know the difference. I'd fix your memory."

"No," said Xander and Spike at the same time. They glared at each other.

Ethan shrugged. "Very well. Spike?" He turned to the vampire, who handed him the Chraka. Ethan dangled it from its chain, watching the stones catch the light. "Nice," he admired.

Xander saw his chance and grabbed for the amulet. His hand had barely moved forward when Ethan smirked at him and gestured with his empty hand. Long red tendrils of light stretched between his hand and Xander's throat. Xander gasped for breath and tried to peel the tendrils away from his neck, but his hands went through the light as though nothing were there.

Ethan tucked the Chraka into his robes. "Just a moment," he said to Spike.

"Oh, take your time," smiled Spike. He leaned back to watch.

Warren, who was still watching from the bar, jumped up and poked Jonathan. "Challenge him!" he whispered, pointing to the mage.

"What? Are you nuts? No way!"

"Come on! I have a plan!" Warren insisted.

"No!"

Warren rolled his eyes and turned to Andrew. "Challenge him. To a mage battle."

Andrew lifted his sleepy head.

"Me? But I can't-"

"Trust me. Challenge him," whispered Warren. Andrew looked at him for a moment, then nodded and stood up.

Jonathan just shook his head.

Andrew marched out to the table. "I challenge you to a battle of magic!" he declared.

Andrew winked at Xander. "Don't worry," he whispered.

Ethan smiled. "Hello, dear boy. What are we playing today?"

"I challenge you to a battle of magic and honor!" Andrew announced loudly. By now, everyone in the room was watching him.

"Cute," said Ethan. "Tell you what, let me finish up here --" He gasped. The red tendrils choking Xander disappeared. Blood trickled from the mage's mouth and he pitched forward. More blood gushed from a wound on his back. Warren stood behind him, holding a dripping stake. Spike looked at it longingly and licked his lips. Xander stared in shock. Had Warren just done what he thought he'd done?

Warren dropped the stake and wiped his bloody hands on Ethan's red velvet robes. He turned Ethan's body over and reached into his clothes to find the Chraka. He tucked it into his own pocket.

Xander strode over to Warren and grabbed him by the arm. "What are you doing?" he asked hoarsely.

Warren looked at him like he was stupid. "Stopping the evil sorcerer!"

"He was human! We're not murderers!"

"He was evil," declared Warren. "About to maybe destroy the fabric of reality and oh, yeah, kill you. Did you forget already?"

"No, but there are other ways --" began Xander.

Jonathan ran over and tugged on Xander's arm. "Can we have this discussion elsewhere?" he asked.

They looked up and saw several large and not nearly human bouncers headed toward them.

Warren stepped forward and spoke out, "We have just defeated the Magi Thorn Magenblod! Uh, so, you better back off!"

"Oh, please!" Spike rolled his eyes. "Just kill them."

Andrew turned to Spike and said in a loud voice, "Why not kill us yourself? If you have no fear of the wizard Warren who struck down the mighty Thorn Magenblod, then challenge him yourself."

The other patrons in the bar looked over at Spike.

"He staked him. From behind! How hard is that?" asked Spike. "Anyway, not my job."

"So you do not fear him?" asked Andrew.

"Hell, no. Would you just kill them already?" Spike glared at the bouncers.

Andrew approached Spike. He took off his stake bandolier and tossed his watergun aside. "Bite me, then. I, who am under the protection of the wizard Warren. If you do not fear his power, than feed upon me." Andrew tilted his neck and pulled back the collar of his shirt.

"What? Oh, come on!" Spike sighed. "I've got a chip in my head," he explained to the bouncers. "Can't bite humans. Even worthless ones like these. Now come on! They've slaughtered one of your patrons!"

"A chip?" Andrew shook his head sorrowfully. "A likely story." He turned to the bouncers and the other patrons. "William the Bloody fears the power of the wizard Warren and he lives. Thorn Magenblod did not fear Warren, and there he lies." Andrew swept his hand towards Ethan's lifeless body. "Our business here is complete. Step aside so we might leave this place, and no harm will come to you."

The bouncers looked at each other and shrugged. "Get out, and don't come back," one said. Spike groaned and slumped forward, slamming his head on the table.

 

* * *

Xander didn't say a word on the drive back to the Magic Box. Jonathan watched nervously behind them the whole way, but no one followed them.

Once inside the shop, Jonathan laid out the supplies for the destruction spell. "Okay, give me the Chraka," he said to Warren.

Warren dangled the amulet playfully in front of the shorter man. "Here you are." Jonathan reached for it, and Warren pulled it upward. "Whoa, too slow!"

Xander snatched the amulet from Warren's hand and punched him in the face.

Warren stumbled backward, hand to his cheek. "What the hell?"

Xander handed the Chraka to Jonathan and turned back to Warren. "This isn't a game! God, you just _killed_ someone back there. Do you even care?"

"What's your problem?" yelled Warren. "Hello, we're heroes! He's a bad guy! I stopped him! What, should we have slapped him on the wrist and sent him so he can be back for the next episode?"

"I don't know!" Xander yelled back. Warren blinked in surprise. Xander took a deep breath and ran his hand over his face. "I don't know," he repeated, more calmly. "I just - we can't kill people. Ever. If it's a mistake, you can never, ever take it back." He looked at Jonathan and Andrew, who were standing nearby, staring at Xander in shock.

Jonathan spoke up first, clearing his throat. "Uh, besides, murder's illegal. It's kind of hard to fight evil if you're in jail." Andrew nodded.

"Okay," said Warren slowly. "So, what do we do with evil humans, then?"

"Tasers?" suggested Andrew.

Xander nodded. "Good idea. I'll have Anya order some tomorrow."

"Then what?" asked Warren. "We can't just dump them in the street. They'll come back."

"If it's something they can be arrested for, we send them to jail," said Xander.

"What if it's not? We couldn't have dropped this guy off with the cops and a note saying, 'He's going to destroy the world. Make him stop,'" Warren countered.

"Maybe a memory spell?" offered Jonathan. "I've read about a couple of them -- I think I could do that."

"Oh, yeah, like _Amazing Spiderman #40_!" said Andrew. "Where the Green Goblin totally forgets Spiderman's secret identity and everything."

Xander nodded, chewing on his lip. "Good idea. Look, we'll deal with it as it happens. You know, case by case? But if this is going to work, we have to agreed on this. No killing. Ever."

"What if it's the only option?" Warren asked quietly.

"It won't be," said Xander. "It can't be." Never again, he thought.

"If it is," began Jonathan. Xander shook his head. "If it is," Jonathan repeated firmly, "then we all have to agree on it. Uh, okay?" He looked at Xander, then Warren, then back at Xander. "Deal?"

Warren nodded. "Deal," he said. He looked at Xander.

Reluctantly, Xander nodded as well. It didn't mean much, since he'd never agree to kill someone, but if it'd stop the others from trying anything, it was worth it. "Deal."

"Deal," agreed Andrew.

"Okay. Good," said Jonathan. He turned back to his spell ingredients and laid the Chraka in the center of the table.

Xander watched the Chraka melt and dissolve in the spell until it was gone. Just like Dawn, along with any hope of -- he stopped that thought before it could finish. No point in wallowing. Couldn't change the past, even with magic. Better to move ahead. "Okay," he said once the spell was finished. "Meet here tomorrow at six for patrol."

He walked back to the workout room behind the shop, not waiting for an answer. Seemed like a good time to hit the punching bag. And if anyone noticed the moisture on his cheeks, well, he usually worked up a sweat when working out.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Much thanks to Veggiebelle for insisting that I write this, to Blinky the Tree Frog whose "Change" inspired me to write a multi-chapter fic, to Lizbeth Marcs, whose stories inspired me to get off my butt and finish it, and to everyone who took the time to read the whole story. Special thanks to Kate and Jetpack Monkey for beta-reading and occasional hand-holding. I couldn't have done it without you guys.   
> Also, check out Empty Veins, a ficlet from Jetpack Monkey (http://jetpack-monkey.livejournal.com/81948.html) showing Buffy's POV during the prologue to this story.


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